Hail the Mighty Chiefs. Super XV Champions 2012, 2013..and beyond...
Coach Dave Rennie calls them his spark plugs and the impact made by the reserves played a key role in the Chiefs winning back-to-back Super Rugby titles.
The competition for places in the starting 15 has been so strong this year that many players on the Chiefs bench would command starting positions at other franchises.
Rennie has given huge credit to the likes of Sam Cane, Robbie Robinson, Augustine Pulu, Michael Fitzgerald, Bundee Aki and Ben Afeaki, who have provided game-changing impetus off the bench.
Cane, a seven-Test loose forward who was among six Chiefs named on Sunday in the All Blacks' 28-man squad for the Rugby Championship, says it's a case of getting on with job wherever he's used.
"You've got to get over not getting picked in the starting team pretty quickly and realise that your role and what's best for the team is to train hard and, when you do come on, try and make an impact without doing anything silly or spectacular," he said.
"When we do [come on] we make an effort to bring a lot of chatter and bring a lot of line speed and help get the boys home, because they've done the job first up and we just need to finish it off."
That level-headedness and team ethos was evident in the semi-final win against the Crusaders last week and again against the Brumbies in the final on Saturday night.
Brumbies coach Jake White said the Chiefs bench's strength and depth had been the difference in a tight match.
White didn't have the same type of experience to call on in the latter stages of a 27-22 defeat.
As his players began to tire, gaps appeared in defence and mistakes crept into their game and Aki and Robinson were able to exploit that for the decisive try.
"The lesson I learned is that we're going to have to get a stronger bench and make sure that bench understands the pressures that come with it," White said.
"[The Chiefs have] got a couple of injuries and some guys aren't even available and yet that's the sort of rugby they can play."
Emma Stoney, NZ Newswire
